NINE-year-old Isla Edwards, who suffers from alopecia, has been given hope by the news - but knows there will be a long way to go before a finished cure hits the market.

Isla Edwards at home in Bishopmill, Elgin, with mum June and dad Grant

FOR as long as she can remember, gorgeous little Isla Edwards has been living with the stigma of alopecia.

But earlier this week, her mum and dad sat her down and told her that there may well be a cure on the way – and the nine-year-old beamed with excitement.

That reaction has been shared around the world by the millions of people who suffer from the autoimmune illness – which causes partial or total hair loss.

The landmark news came from researchers working at Columbia University Medical Centre in New York.

They reported that a drug, originally developed to treat bone marrow cancer, had caused three patients who have alopecia areata to regrow a full head of hair within five months.

Isla’s mum June said that while they are all delighted with the news, they know there will still be a long way to go before a finished cure hits the market. But it has given them hope.

June explained: “It is a huge development. Up until now there has been no talk of any sort of medication or drugs that could help. It is exciting at the minute, it is a really good thing but we have to find out a whole lot more about it first.

“My concern would be what kind of side effects it could cause.

“As much as we would want something for her that could get her hair back – because that’s what she is so desperate for – I wouldn’t want it to have any other counter effects on her health.”

Alopecia is an autoimmune disease that means the body’s own antibodies attack hair cells, leading to baldness.

It is not linked to male pattern baldness, which is hormonal.

The new drug ruxolitinib was effective in fighting T-cells, which attacked hair follicles.

The devastating impact of alopecia meant that Jayne lost all of her hair

She started losing her hair when she was a student at 19 but turned her own anguish into positive action to help herself and others.

Jayne set up charity Autoimmune Alopecia Research UK ( www.aar-uk.org
) to help fund research. She also launched her own semi-permanent make-up company, Lasting Impression by Jayne, as well as prosthetic scalp solution Freedom Hair.

Jayne admitted the news coming out of New York is encouraging.

She said: “It is quite exciting for several aspects.

“But the reality is that it’s not going to hit the market any time soon and it’s a very expensive drug.

“But what’s really good about this is that the drug work has produced full regrowth in three people. And I see this being used to kick-start the treatment process.”